Sleeping with smartphones, and other vices

Consumers around the world admit it: they sleep with their smartphone, take it in the shower, and would rescue the device from a fire before saving the family cat.

29.07.2015

(AFP) Consumers
around the world admit it: they sleep with their smartphone, take it in
the shower, and would rescue the device from a fire before saving the
family cat.

Those are among the findings of a seven-country survey of more
than 7,000 people about smartphone habits released Tuesday by Motorola,
the newly acquired division of Chinese electronics giant Lenovo.

Sixty percent of those surveyed said they slept holding their
handsets -- with the highest percentages in India (74 percent) and China
(70 percent). And 57 percent said they took the device into the toilet,
with the highest totals from China and Brazil.

One in six smartphone users said they used their phones while
showering, and more than half, 54 percent, said they would reach for
the smartphone before saving their cat in the event of a fire.

How close are people to their devices? 22 percent said they would
give up sex for a weekend before parting with their smartphone. And 40
percent tell secrets to their phones they would not reveal even to their
best friend.

But the relationship is not perfect. Only 39 percent said they were
"happy" with their smartphone, and 79 percent felt bothered that their
devices interrupted them at inopportune moments.

The survey was conducted online by KRC Research with a total of 7,112
smartphone owners in the United States, Britain, Brazil, China, Spain,
Mexico and India.

It was released as Motorola unveiled two upgraded versions of its
flagship Moto X handset, one with a larger 5.7 inch display and
another with a 5.5 inch screen. The company said the devices would be
priced hundreds of dollars lower than other flagship devices.

The company also unveiled a second-generation Moto G, priced at under $200 and aimed at emerging markets.

Motorola will be selling most of the devices unlocked for use with almost any carrier.